Great Interest in Latest Norway License Round

Great Interest in Latest Norway License Round
There has been great interest in the Norwegian continental shelf during the country's latest licensing round, according to Norway's Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

There has been “great interest” in the Norwegian continental shelf during the country’s latest licensing round, according to Norway's Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

Applications from 31 companies were received by the ministry in connection with the announcement of APA (allocation in predefined areas) 2021, which is described by the ministry as the annual licensing round for the best-known exploration areas on the Norwegian shelf. It comprises the majority of the available exploration areas, the ministry highlights.

The full list of companies that applied can be seen below:

  • Aker BP ASA
  • A / S Norske Shell
  • Chrysaor Norge AS
  • Concedo ASA
  • ConocoPhillips Skandinavia AS
  • DNO Norge AS
  • Equinor Energy AS
  • Idemitsu Petroleum Norge AS
  • INEOS E&P Norge AS
  • KUFPEC Norway AS
  • Lime Petroleum AS
  • Longboat Energy Norge AS
  • Lotos Exploration & Production Norge AS
  • Lundin Energy Norway AS
  • M Vest Energy AS
  • Neptune Energy Norge AS
  • OKEA ASA
  • OMV (Norway) AS
  • ONE Dyas Norge AS
  • Pandion Energy AS
  • Petrolia NOCO AS
  • PGNiG Upstream Norway AS
  • RN Nordic Oil AS
  • Source Energy AS
  • Spirit Energy Norge AS
  • Suncor Energy Norge AS
  • Sval Energi AS
  • TotalEnergies EP Norge AS
  • Vår Energi AS
  • Wellesley Petroleum AS
  • Wintershall Dea Norge AS

“I am happy that the oil companies still see good opportunities on the Norwegian shelf,” Norway’s minister of petroleum and energy, Tina Bru, said in a government statement. “Exploration is important for maintaining activity and good resource management and lays the foundation for value creation and safe jobs throughout the country,” Bru added in the statement.

The ministry noted that the APA area is being expanded as geological knowledge in areas on the Norwegian shelf increases. In this year’s licensing round, the predefined area was expanded in the North Sea, the Norwegian Sea and the Barents Sea.

APA 2021 was announced on June 9. In a government statement at the time, Bru noted that the announcement and allocation of exploration area is important to maintain the level of activity on the Norwegian shelf. The aim is to grant new production licenses in the announced areas at the beginning of 2022.

During June, the ministry offered Norske Shell, Equinor, Idemitsu Petroleum Norway, INEOS E&P Norway, Lundin, OMV (Norway) and Vår Energi four production licenses as part of the 25th licensing round. One is located in the Norwegian Sea and three in the Barents Sea. The 25th licensing round was announced in November 2020 and the application deadline was February 23.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com


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